The Chains That Bind Us
by J.J. Banks
Summary: [AU] Botan is a research student dead set on finding a real live demon and bringing him home. One virgin's kiss later and a certain unfortunate demon finds himself forcibly tethered. [HB]
1. The Unwilling Slave

**J.J. - **Cheers all around for my second story! (-crickets chirp-) >.>; Anyway. This was inspired after reading the first part of the online comic 'Pawn'. My family thinks I'm an even bigger loser because I just spent the better part of my Saturday plowing through this first chapter before I lost my motivation.

**Disclaimer: **I own the entire second season of YYH, several doushinji, and 9 mangas. That's owning some serious Yu Yu Hakusho if I do say so myself. I also give the generalstory starteridea to the artist of 'Pawn', whoever he/she may be.

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**The Chains That Bind Us**

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Chapter One

The Unwilling Slave

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_Wo unto all those that enter the cursed Lair of the Isle._

_Home to unimaginable treasures and monsters_

_Many have ventured here in hopes of securing such treasure_

_None have returned_

_Any who dare to brave the endless stairs and twisted labyrinth_

_Have met only a gruesome end_

_Doom awaits those who encounter the fierce Gatekeeper,_

_Guardian of the treasures_

_A millennia of brave warriors and powerful mages who have tried_

_A thousand years of death and failure. _

Botan grinned self confidently and rolled the scroll back into it's neat position. "I guess I'd better watch my step then," she said. Setting the scroll carefully down to the side, she stretched her arm, holding her torch high. "Silly priests..."

The warm, orange light of the flame lit her view of a crumbling archway, decorated in ancient runes and symbols. A large stone block rested on the top, a perch for two particularly menacing looking gargoyles. There was no door, but the inside was dark enough that Botan couldn't see anything. She took a cautious step closer.

"This must be the right entrance..." A warning scroll, protective statues... how much more obvious could it be?

As she approached the darkened doorway, a feeling of unease blossomed in her stomach. This was the tomb that supposedly housed enough treasure to make you richer than every king in the world. Combined. But it certainly wasn't the treasure she was frightened of, oh no, it was the creature said to guard the horde. The Gatekeeper. She had a picture of the demon, but it was drawn by ancient Romans and was thus strictly two-dimensional, and looked liked it belonged in stain-glass.

She took a breath, mentally chasing away her fears, and placed a hand on the cool doorframe. She'd come all this way, provisioned by her own money and hard-work, and she was not turning around now. A scholar at an esteemed European college, her life's passion was the study of demons and their mythology.

It was not the treasure she was so daringly walking into that lair for; it was the demon.

She raised her torch out in front of her, peering into the darkness. More stairs. Muttering an incoherent curse of complaint, she began to inch her way down the crumbling stones. She had been descending stairs since she had arrived at the Isle– the place was filled with them.

Slowly, so as not to blow out the flame, she stretched her torch to her right and then to her left, trying to judge what was on the sides. There was nothing. Only a sheer drop on either side of the zig-zagging staircase. Biting her lip, the blue-haired scholar consciously moved more to the center.

She breeched the bottom of the stairs, coming onto a cracked, stone floor. Glancing around, she wondered how long it would be before she encountered the infamous Gatekeeper.

"Well, well, well."

A deep, guttural growl of a voice.

She gulped. Not long at all. Trembling, she turned towards the voice. Her torch revealed the distinct, but shadowed, form of an enormous monster a mere few feet away from her. She felt as if all of her life-force had left her body in a mighty _swoosh_.

"What have we here?" the demon growled. "A puny mortal?"

Botan could only whimper in response. The demon chuckled, as if her actions proved his point. She supposed it was a chuckle, anyway. It sounded like a cascade of rocks tumbling down a rough mountain side.

It leaned towards her, bringing them more to eye level. It was so close she could smell it's smoky breath. Now fully in her torch light, she could see the details of it's appearance. Although crouched, she could tell that it's anatomy was much like a humans, with the exception that it tripled the size of any human man, and held far more prominent and sculpted muscles. The hands were normal only in the sense that they contained five fingers. The claws upon each of these fingers, Botan guessed, were at least the size of her arm. It's hair was unruly and spiked in several directions, a deep black color set off only by the white starburst of hair near the front. It's skin was a smooth green, but was marred grotesquely by numerous pairs of purple-hued eyes seemingly embedded in the skin.

"So puny mortal," it spoke, revealing a set of gleaming fangs. Botan could have touched them. His yellow eyes, sparked with crimson-colored irises, gleamed as it grinned, revealing even more dangerous teeth. "You come seeking the treasures, I imagine, but the only thing you will find here, fool, is death," it's grin lessened into a smug smirk before it promptly blew out her torch in an easy breath, "and darkness."

Now consumed in darkness, Botan finally found her voice. She screamed and backed away as fast as she could. She tripped over a loose stone and crashed painfully onto her backside. She heard the gravelly chuckle again, and then the sound of heavy footsteps approaching her. She squealed in panic, turning frantically so she could move on her hands and knees. As she scrambled away, she distinctly felt a claw run along her leg.

She screamed again. "I call upon the ancient laws of the demon lords to claim my soul and flesh by the challenge of the mind!" She shrieked out the words, certain the demon hadn't understood a word because she had rambled it off so fast.

She waited, either for death, or his acceptance, her breathing short and raspy. After an eternity that was probably only a few seconds had passed, she heard a distinct noise that sounded suspiciously like a sigh. In the next instant, everything was lit up by several torches, revealing a dank and rather plain cavern. Slightly disappointed at not seeing mounds of gold and jewels, she looked around for any things that might lead to treasure. Sure enough, behind the demon was a doorway.

"How do you know the laws of demons?" the growl-like voice snapped her out of her train of thought. She glanced up at it, still holding her torch, although it wasn't necessary anymore. The demon was glaring down at her, not with hatred, but annoyance. Her death had only been delayed, as the demon no doubt saw it.

"Well, I... uh..." she spluttered.

"You are a scholar," it said. It wasn't a question, so Botan didn't answer. It snorted. "I should have known when you waltzed in here alone without any armor or other means of protection. No weapons either. . ." It growled angrily at itself. "I took your for a stupid thief."

Botan laughed a little, though it still sounded frightened. "Me? Oh, I'm no thief..." She cleared her throat nervously. "Um, my name is–"

"Pointless!" the demon growled menacingly in such a roar that it blew Botan's small hat off. She stumbled a little.

"Why?" she asked, more than a bit miffed that she didn't have a hat anymore.

"You're going to die anyway," it said, sounding more aggravated that he had to kill her this boring way, then smug.

"Oh really?" Botan challenged a bit daringly. "I beg to differ."

"You will beg!" the demon roared, instantly dropping the smirk from Botan's face. "After I have beaten you at this pathetic challenge. Name your riddle now, mortal, so I may devour your flesh and soul."

"Riddle?" Botan echoed, letting out a breezy laugh. "No, no, no. Way too easy. I have something else in mind."

She had caught the demon off guard, and the angry scowl dropped from it's features, changing instead to a perplexed scowl. "No riddle? But what else is there to challenge the mind?"

Botan grinned. "It's a surprise. I left it in my bag, so I'll just run up the stairs and get it, okay?" She turned and began running up the stairs.

"Hey!" the demon began.

She glanced back. "Oh don't worry, I'm bound by the law of the demons, so I won't try to run away or anything."

Not waiting for a reply, she continued to run up the crumbling stairs, taking them two at a time. In seconds she had reached the archway and after a quick glance, she ran to her bag. She quickly knelt, rummaging through her notes, maps and other tools. Finally, her hand brushed across a square box. With a triumphant, "Aha!" she pulled it out.

Tucking it neatly under her chest, she flew back down the stairs. The demon watched her the entire way down until she stood in front of it's massive form, holding the box out towards him, panting a little.

"A game?" it inquired ruefully.

"Not just any game– chess!"

It gave a particularly sour look.

"Oh come on, it's a human game, surely you can beat me at that," she urged pleadingly.

"Indeed," it agreed with a touch of annoyance. "Well then, mortal, let's play."

Triumph and excitement erupted in Botan. She broke out in a grin, setting the game on the floor. "Great! Hold on, I'll set up the pieces for us." She unfolded the box into the game board, arranging the pieces expertly in their correct positions. She straightened and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, proud of her handy work. She looked up at the demon. "Would you like to be black or white?"

"Black," it answered simply.

Botan settled herself comfortably next to the board, shifting it so the black pieces were towards the demon. "Since I'm white, I'll go first." She picked up a white, porcelain pawn and placed it two squares ahead. A simple beginning move. She smiled at the demon. "Okay, your turn."

It made a low grunt and moved it's gigantic hand towards the pieces. It paused, a frustrated look across it's features.

"Do you need help... with your claws and everything?" Botan asked timidly.

"No," it growled dangerously. But it continued to stare perplexedly at the board, and Botan could have sworn she saw it biting it's lip in thought, if only for a second.

She tilted her head, regarding it through thoughtful, narrowed eyes. "You..."

"What?" the demon snapped it's gaze to her.

"You don't know how to play, do you?"

The demon's eyes narrowed to dangerous slits and it snarled.

"You don't," Botan concluded with a triumphant smile. "Don't worry, the law of the demons states that I have to teach you all of the rules of my challenge, or else I forfeit."

"Damn," the demon cursed harshly, clenching it's fist.

She arched an eyebrow. "Oh..." She paused. "You didn't honestly think I would cheat and not tell you the rules, did you?"

The demon continued to glare.

"Nice try," she said, "but I know the demon laws by heart. And so, I will now tell you all the rules of chess. But don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions."

_Several Long and Boring Explanations Later_

"What an infuriatingly complicated game," the demon growled.

"Well, if it's too hard..." Botan began.

"It's fine." Another fanged grin. "But you're only hurrying your own demise, you know."

She answered the grin with a flat, almost bored look. "Quit stalling and play, demon."

The air heated threateningly, but other than that, the demon said nothing, placing his own pawn into action. It was a tricky business to manage with the long claws, but he exuded a practiced grace that surprised Botan. "There, I've moved. Happy now?"

'Yes, thank you,' had been on the tip of her tongue, but at the last moment, Botan caught herself. "No, I'm not happy until I win." The demon's lip curled downward in disgust. "Trying to secure your victory through a slip of my tongue again?"

Having been seen through, the demon cursed, glaring to the side. Botan only smiled softly, placing her next piece into play. And so the game went on, each player in a battle of wits put into game against each other. Botan had to hand it to the demon, it was actually very good for having just learned. Although it was a surprise, she didn't let it deter her. She was a scholar, and a human. Everyone knew that smart humans were playing chess all the time. She couldn't lose.

It was nearing the end of the game, and it was the demon's turn. A very long turn, as it was turning out to be.

"Are you stalling?" she yawned.

"_No._ I'm thinking." It stared intensely at the game board.

"Ooooh. Really?"

"Yes, so shut up."

"Your brains awfully slow to have to take this long..."

The demon slowly lifted it's gaze up to meet hers. It glowered angrily, all four fangs showing. It was obviously not a good idea to infer that a demon of hellfire was stupid. In a fury, it swooped it's hand down and placed a bishop three squares away, placing it down hard enough to rattle the entire game. "I'm a demonic prince of fire." _I'll show you! _Seemed to be the unspoken words in the gesture.

It now looked very triumphant. "Check."

Shocked, Botan glanced down at the board. "Hmm... that was unexpected..."

Taking this as worry, the demon smirked. "Your soul is as good as mine."

Botan did a couple more 'hms' and other thoughtful noises, her brow crinkled, before picking up her king and placing it right in front of the ebony queen. She grinned up at the demon smugly. "Checkmate."

The horror upon the demon's face was priceless.

But feelings of triumph quickly turned to fear as the demon exploded. The demon, now identified as male, was on his feet in an instant. He roared, knocking the chess game to pieces. Botan was knocked unceremoniously out of her seating position, hands held tightly over her ears. When the roaring stopped, she cautiously removed her hands, peering to her side.

The demon had his back turned to her, shoulders quivering. She sucked in a breath, actually feeling a bit of sympathy. She stood to her feet and approached it slowly. "Are... are you okay?"

"_No I am not okay!"_ It whipped around to glare at her, their faces once again perilously close. The color drained from her face and she couldn't think of anything to say. "I was just defeated by a little girl! Not by a might warrior, or even another demon, but by a damn scholar!"

He groaned. "I will be scorned and labeled as one of the weak. I won't be deemed fit to haunt children's dreams."

"I'm sorry," Botan offered weakly.

"What are _you_ sorry for?" The demon apparently liked to yell at her. "You're not the one going back to the hell pits of Makai!"

She paused, taking a deep breath. This moment was what all her hard work and studies came down to. Trying to hide the excitement from her voice, she said, "Who says you have to go back?"

"What?" the demon's voice sounded so full of hatred, she almost quivered. "You want me to help you take all of the treasures I've been guarding?"

"I see," Botan said softly. "If you fail to guard the treasures, the magic seal binding you here will be broken and you'll be sent back to Demon world in shame."

"Yes," the angered reply came.

"But I don't want the treasures."

The demon blanched. "What the hell do you mean?_"_

"I told you I wasn't a thief." She folded her arms across her chest and turned away as if she'd been highly insulted.

"Everyone wants the treasure! _Everyone_!"

"Not me," she turned back towards him. "I already have what I came for."

The demon seemed infuriated by her responses. "But that means you came here . . . ." he trailed off slightly. Pink eyes locked with the larger, far more intense demonic ones. They held each other's gaze for a moment before the demon finally finished his sentence, "For me."

"Mmhm.." Botan bit her lip, grinning like the little schoolgirl the demon had labeled her as. It was if she expected him to be flattered.

"Fine," the demon snapped and crossed his arms impatiently. It was harder to tell if he was more horrified or embarrassed that a mortal wanted him. "So what? You get a wish from me instead of the treasure. It's only one."

"I know."

The demon crouched down, bringing their noses a mere foot apart. "Alright then, you little know-it-all, how do you intend to bring me with you? There are magical seals that bind me here. Besides, the passages are far too narrow for me to fit through and I can't exactly pass through solid rock!"

"I know."

Frustrated and angry, the beast snarled, "Then how in the hell–"

Botan closed the small distance between them, leaned forward, and kissed the demon. She barely had time to see the look of shock across his face before black smoke erupted around them.

She took a step back, coughing and fanning her hands around her face in an effort to clear away the smoke. She looked up, watching as the smoked ebbed into transparent curls.

She gasped as a figure slowly came into view.

"I did it! It worked!"

The demon glanced down at himself in curious surprise. He was now about the same size as Botan, perhaps a little shorter. His skin was no longer green, and completely devoid of eyes. His hair stayed the same, although now it was a bit tamer. His eyes lost the yellow, but the passionate red irises remained. One remaining purple eye was in the middle of his forehead, evidence of his former form, shadowed by strands of black hair.

He was also completely naked.

Botan's eyes widened girlishly, her cheeks flaming.

"Turn around!" the demon's angry voice jerked her enough that she quickly whipped around. She covered her eyes too, just to be safe.

"Don't move," she heard him command. She obeyed as he hurried into the treasure room. He came back out, adorned in a dirty warrior's outfit. It was no doubt previously apparel for a skeleton.

He marched over until he was directly in front of her, arms crossed across a chest that was just as defined and muscled as before, just more suited to his current size. His eyes were narrowed, his lips a curl of annoyance. "Okay, so you knew that a mortal's kiss can alter the size, and thus form, of a demon." Botan beamed, and he coldly added, "It's not like it was that much of a secret anyway."

But Botan's look didn't falter, her smile turning coy, almost smug. The demon glowered at her. "You can wipe that smug look off your face. I'm still stuck here in the dungeons. Your _kiss_ hasn't changed anything so it wasn't that special."

Botan chuckled. "But it was special. Very, very special."

The demon looked at her suspiciously, waiting for her to elaborate. She smiled, her cheeks rinsing a pretty shade of pink. "It was my first kiss."

The demon turned pale. He made an odd choking noise, as if he'd just swallowed an entire cup of lemon juice. "No...!" He lunged forward and gripped her upper arms tightly, an expression of horror across his features. He dragged her towards him, squeezing like he wanted to pop her in half. "You are a _pure, _untouched _virgin?"_

She smiled uneasily, nodding.

He released her in an angry shove, taking staggering steps away from her. His back was turned, but she could hear the colorful stream of curses he was emitting. She rubbed her bruised arms. He obviously hadn't lost all of his demon strength in the shrinking process. She let him have a few more moments before she decided to clarify, "So your soul is really bonded to me now?"

His entire body went tense, fists clenched so hard it looked painful. His head turned hardly an inch towards her. "Yes," came the ground out reply.

"And you are forever at my command?"

"Yes!" He turned his head over his shoulder to glower furiously at her.

"And I still have one wish left!" This was said more to herself, a grin brightening up her features.

"Yes! You win already, alright!"

Botan paused at his pained tone, immediately feeling a bit guilty, if not sympathetic. He turned completely away from her, slumping onto the ground, his shoulders hunched. "You can make any damn wish you want. I don't care."

She gazed at him for a moment, already knowing what her wish would be. She smiled just a little. _I hope you like it. _She strolled confidently towards the center of the cavern. She took a deep breath before raising her hands in the air. Speaking in clear, forceful tones, she began to summon her wish.

"Hear me, keepers of the laws! I call upon you to fulfill my wish!" She could feel the demon's eyes on her now. "Let the magic seals be broken! Release the demon that guards the treasure! Set him free!"

The final word echoed around the empty tavern like a dying symbol. _Free, free, free._ Outside the cavern, the ruby encrusted shield placed atop the archway shattered, littering the ground with it's now useless fragments.

Across the room, the demon's eyes were wide. _I'm free._ Then his gaze landed on the blue-haired girl, grinning broadly at him.

_No I'm not._

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**J.J. - **More to be explained on the exact reason Botan wants a demon so bad in later chapters. It is a big part of the plot, after all. >.>; Please review.

Next chapter: Bittersweet Freedom


	2. Bittersweet Freedom

**J.J. - >. **Sorry this update took so long... (-likeamonth-cough-) Thanks for sticking around, I guess. I've been watching serious movies all Thanksgiving break-- it was a fun relief to be able to write this more or less pointless and funny story. Anyway-- on to the update!

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**Chapter Two**

**Bittersweet Freedom**

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"Will you go already?"

Hiei shook his head, the barest tilt of his chin, his body tensed. All of his life, he had been taught that to step outside of a binding charm meant certain death. One more step and he was going to die, he was sure of it.

"You'll be fine, I promise," the blunette assured from behind him, a hint of amusement in her voice.

"What do you know?" He snapped. He edged a toe a bit further, dragging it the few inches across the dusty, stone step. He grumbled, "You're just a stupid human–" He gasped as an abrupt force landed on his lower back, shoving him forward. He tried to catch his balance, save himself from inevitable doom, but it was too late. He was tripping, head first, right into the dirt, and across the charm's boundaries. He landed with an unceremonious 'oof!', his body sliding awkwardly against the hard ground.

Once he'd stopped, he lay waiting, eyes closed, for hell to swallow him up. He waited for a good minute or two, but when no searing hot flames engulfed him, he dared open his eyes. Blinking slightly, he quickly sat up and turned to look behind him. His eyes widened. He was beyond the gate... _and nothing had happened._

An indescribable feeling of freedom slowly spread through him. He felt unleashed, untamed, and completely unstoppable. He was _free. _Of course, there was the annoying setback that he was in his smaller, less desirable form, but he was still free. Free to cause havoc and hell wherever he saw fit. He was no longer restricted to tormenting the simple fools that came seeking the treasure. The entire mortal world was his playing field now.

"I _told_ you nothing would happen."

He froze. That light, bubbly, and definitely annoying voice shattered his hopeful vision like glass. Now that he was looking for it, he could feel it: the tangible pull on his soul that meant his own was bound to a mortal's. He turned to look, or rather glare, at the young, blue-haired woman. His stomach churned unpleasantly. He wasn't bound to just any mortal, oh no, he had the _pleasure_ of being laden down with happy-go-lucky, smarty-pants over there.

She obviously noticed his sour look, because she suddenly smiled encouragingly. "Hey now, don't look so glum," she chirped. "Would you rather be stuck down in that dark, boring dungeon?"

Hiei paused. The elated feeling of freedom was still present, although severely dampened, and he could remember life before. Every twenty to thirty years, some treasure-seeking block of a man would come with a little group, waltzing foolishly into his territory. He played. They burned. Life went on. The time between got pathetically boring. He tilted his head to the side, narrowing his eyes as he observed the girl. She was nicely shaped, for a human, and she had pleasant eyes. _Far_ out of his league, of course, but he wouldn't have to gag every time he looked at her. As long as she kept her mouth shut, it wouldn't be that unbearable. Maybe she'd contract a disease and die– then he'd really be free. He smirked a little at the thought. "No."

"Good." She smiled. She lugged her bag at him, calling over her shoulder as it hit him square in the chest. "Be a love and carry my bag for me alright?"

An order. His arms barely wrapped around it before it hit the floor. He easily swung the large and bulky bag over his shoulder, but it wasn't exactly light luggage. It wasn't in the least bit heavy for him, but he had to commend her for packing it all the way down here herself.

"I have to look for markings," she continued breezily, holding her torch up high.

Hiei followed behind her, exaggerating a yawn. "What do you need markings for?"

"So we don't get lost, of course. They marked the paths I used in the labyrinth."

Hiei rolled his eyes. "Oh, clever, clever you."

She ignored his sarcasm, disappearing behind one of the corners. Hiei nearly ran into her coming around the corner himself. He glowered, prepared to offer her some type of irritated curse, but the outburst got lost in his throat. He glanced around uneasily, taking in their surroundings. She had used the term labyrinth rather loosely, to say the least. What surrounded them was nothing short of the most complicated infrastructure he'd ever seen. Stairs, corridors, twists, turns, all in crumbling tan stone, surrounded them on every side. There were a few lit torches here and there, casting the setting in an dusky, orange light.

"There, see?" The girl pointed. Hiei's eyes followed her extended finger. Sure enough, there to the side of one of the staircases was a crude arrow scratched into the wall. He didn't know whether to be impressed, or disappointed. He had rather hoped they would get lost and he could wait until she starved to death.

Hiei followed her to the intended staircase, bag in tow. They both began the trek upwards, pausing every ten or so minutes to follow a different arrow, switching directions, or breaking off into another corridor. Botan seemed particularly glad when they could walk on even ground, instead of hiking up stairs. They remained completely in silence the entire way, which suited Hiei just fine. He was stifling a bored yawn when Botan abruptly stopped. He nearly crashed into her, cursing irritably as he sidestepped out of the way to avoid any sort of physical contact. (Mortal germs, ew...)

"Baka– give a warning next time you decide to suddenly stop."

She gave him a sideways glance. "Sorry, I just..." She broke off, biting her lower lip as she looked worriedly around them. She took a few steps forward, examining the walls carefully. She exhaled nervously. "There should be a marking around here somewhere..."

Figured. She had gotten them lost. Hiei leaned against one of the stone walls languidly, crossing his arms. There was no telling how long they would be there. He watched her running a hand against the walls, searching, before he became bored and his eyes drifted away.

"I'm sure it's here," Botan said.

"Of course," he replied, not bothering to hide his sarcasm. He shifted his position, propping his arm up to balance himself. He glanced towards the dusty, crumbling stone he was leaning against, lids heavy. Nearly two inches from his head, scratched messily into the wall, was an arrow. His eyes widened.

For one brief moment, he considered sharing his discovery. But the moment soon passed, replaced with a more favorable option. Slowly, a notorious smirk curled across his lips, his eyes gleaming evilly. He stole a quick glance towards the girl to make sure she wasn't looking before, looking as nonchalant as possible, he brought his demonic claws up and scratched out the arrow.

He admired his handy work proudly, just as Botan came walking back towards him. "Have _you_ seen any markings?" she asked tiredly.

He stretched a little more to cover the former marking, eyes wandering innocently towards the ceiling. "Nope."

She gave an annoyed sigh. "Well, I guess I'll just have to use my notes and the map then."

Hiei blanched. "Notes?"

"Yes," she replied, holding out her hand. "Good thing, eh?" His lip curled with a slight twitch, but the blue-haired scholar didn't notice. "My bag, if you please." He grudgingly handed it over.

Whenever he thought she couldn't find a way to be any more obnoxious, she would somehow managed to find a way through. He growled, watching her rummage through her bag. She wasn't like any mortal he'd ever met before. She seemed so clueless and naive, but yet she still managed to elude every obstacle, including any he'd thrown at her. It drove him crazy.

There had to be something he was overlooking. Something different about her... he narrowed his eyes decisively... and he planned on finding out what it was.

"Found it!" she declared triumphantly. She held up a haggard piece of paper that looked like it had been folded one too many times. Her eyes scanned it contemplatively for a few moments before she looked up and pointed down the path the arrow Hiei had scratched had pointed. "That way."

She folded her map and placed it back into her bag. She glanced behind her before tossing it at Hiei again. Ignoring his glare as he caught it, she began up the stairs. They were steep, the steepest they'd tackled so far. Her legs began to ache after only twenty steps.

"Maps, notes... what other tricks have you got in here?" she heard Hiei's voice behind her, sounding not very tired at all. She turned to find him digging shamelessly through her bag.

She felt too tired to argue with him. She turned back around and continued to hike upward. "That bag..." She paused breathlessly, "contains all my food and water... and other provisions..."

Deciding she needed a break, she practically collapsed against the next stone step, panting slightly. She glanced down at Hiei, who was looking at her in studious amusement, one dark eyebrow arched. He looked perfectly fine, his breathing was normal... Geez, he wasn't even breaking a sweat!

"I believe it took me eight days to find my way down to your hall, and it will probably take another four to get back up, following my markings," she said, trying to explain the provisions thing better to him. "I've rationed it out accordingly. Us mortals need food and water to survive..."

She took a deep breath as her lung capacity slowly returned to normal, leaning back on both elbows, eyes drifting close. "So don't lose that bag or any of it's contents, okay?"

She heard a harsh movement and an explicit curse. She opened one eye curiously. Hiei was looking particularly sullen about something, cursing under his breath as he propped the bag atop his shoulder. She had the very uncomfortable suspicion that he had been about to drop her bag off the steep side of the stairs.

His scarlet gaze fell to her own again. "So, why are we sitting here?"

Reminding herself that she was still in no way on friendly terms with the demon, she heaved herself to her feet. "Just taking a little break– let's go."

This time she was tired again after only ten steps. Giving a mental whimper, she forced herself to keep going, step after step. By forcing her mind off of the pain in her legs, and the ache in her side, she was able to move forward at a fairly steady pace.

She paused for a moment, teetering on the edge of a step. Fearing she would fall, she allowed herself to step backwards. She gasped as she collided with a solid chest. Hiei gave a soft grunt, two hands wrapping around her upper arms. She was close to him, close enough to feel his breathing through her back, and it felt nice. She felt the imperceptible movement of his lips against her ear when he spoke, "You're already moving so slow... now you're moving backwards?"

She pushed forward, wrenching out of his grasp. She suddenly found it imperative that he not be touching her if she wanted to form coherent sentences. She could feel his questioning gaze on her back, but she started up again without looking at him. She was trembling slightly, and it wasn't entirely because she was tired.

"You're still moving slow," he drawled idly, but he was at least a few steps behind her now.

"Yes, well," she huffed, "excuse me for not having immortal abilities..." She gasped in delight as she looked ahead. "Look! The stairway ends up there." _Thank god._

"So it does," Hiei said. "Only fifty something steps to go too..."

She felt a good portion of her good spirit drop. He was right. She could see the end, but that didn't mean it was close. She set her jaw determinedly and kept forcing herself to continue upward. After only a dozen or so steps, she was already panting for breath, her leg muscles throbbing.

She didn't realize how slow she was going until she glanced to her side, watching Hiei pass her casually. _He_ was going slow –just plodding along– and he was passing her.

_She was never going to make it._

"This was ... sure a lot ... easier," she huffed, "on the way ... down..."

Hiei gave her a sideways look, before continuing up without her. Jerk, some gentlemen he was. She grudged along, certain the steps kept getting steeper as she went. After several, long, grueling minutes that felt like an eternity, she looked up and gave a small noise of delight as she found she only had ten more steps to go.

Right. _Only_ ten. She was crawling up the steep steps now, her bare knees and hands getting the brunt of the force. _Seven more._ Where had Hiei gone anyway? He couldn't have left too far, he was still bound to her after all. Okay, now she wasn't imagining it. The steps _were_ getting steeper. _Five more. _She slipped, her knee crashing particularly hard against the stone. She let out a soft whimper of pain, biting her lip. _Four more. _

She was struggling onto the third step until her salvation, when a pair of strong hands gripped her waist. She squeaked in surprise, but before she could protest anything, the hands lifted her clean of the ground... And promptly tossed her over the top of the stairs.

She screamed and crashed clumsily onto the stone floor (not exactly soft). When she had tumbled to a stop, she closed her eyes, allowing her heart to calm it's racing pace. She kept her eyes closed, separately moving each of her body parts to make sure nothing was broken. Relieved to find she was still in one piece, she opened her eyes.

Hiei was breaching the stairs, dusting off his hands as if he'd just thrown out the trash. He grinned devilishly at her.

"What the hell was that for!" she raged at him, propping herself upright.

He gave her a surprised look. "What? I was just giving you a friendly push up."

"Friendly push! You picked me up and _threw_ me!"

He seemed honestly surprised, or simply amused, that she would argue against him. "Hn. The throw obviously knocked some backbone into you," he said.

She scoffed angrily, opening her mouth to retort, but a soft growling noise stopped her. She glanced down, placing a hand over her stomach. It growled demandingly again. She sighed. "I'm too hungry to argue with you right now. " She ignored his disappointed look. "Hand me my bag?"

He stretched it out towards her, not moving forward. Seeing that she would have to go to him to get her bag, she hoisted herself to her feet, taking her bag wordlessly from him. She found a nice, relatively smooth rock, and sat down next to it. She opened her bag and took out the appropriate amount of rations. She leaned tiredly against the cool stone, chewing the salted meat slowly, wishing she didn't feel so tired already.

She felt more than saw Hiei sit next to her. "So," he said, leaning towards her, "Your stomach makes that noise when you're hungry?"

"Mm-hm..." she nodded. She giggled when he brought a finger up to poke it.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing," she smiled a little. "That tickles..."

"Tickle," he repeated in unbelief. He gave her one of his humans-are-so-weird looks.

She shrugged, beginning to pack her food away. "I'm still hungry, but I can only eat a little to make sure the food will last me to the surface. That's why it's called rations." She pushed her bag to the side, slumping against the stone wall.

They stayed in cozy silence for a few minutes, and Botan's eyes started to feel heavy. But before she could let herself get too comfortable, Hiei grabbed her chin between his fingers. Her eyes widened in shock as he pushed his hand forward, cupping her cheek. He turned her towards him and she could feel her cheeks growing warm. _What was he doing?_

He brought his face mere inches from her own, eyes scrutinizing her face carefully. She swallowed, trying desperately to get her vocal chords to work. But before she could summon enough sense to say anything, he spoke, "Were you attractive in the mortal world?"

"Was I w-what?" she stammered.

"Were you attractive," he repeated calmly, as if it were not at all odd to randomly ask someone if they thought themselves attractive.

"I . . . I don't know," she said helplessly, finding it even harder to speak because he had just decided to run his thumb across her cheek.

"Either you are, or you aren't," he said.

"Well," she began, wishing he would stop touching her. "I've been told I'm pretty, so . . . I guess I am. I mean, I'm not ugly..." She paused. "Why?"

"I was just wondering," he shrugged one shoulder amiably. "_I _certainly don't think you are, so I wanted to know if others of your kind at least did."

She felt her face go tomato red. She shoved him harshly off of her, glaring angrily. "You jerk!"

"What?" He gave her a perplexed glare of his own.

She rolled her eyes, turning away from him in embarrassment. "Just keep your _observations_ to yourself, got it?"

He grumbled slightly. "Mortals are so sensitive..."

* * *

**J.J. - **Review please.

--Next chapter currently undetermined--


	3. The Forced Rescue

**J.J. - **Hooo... wow. Finally, eh?

* * *

**Chapter Three**

**The Forced Rescue**

* * *

She was in that glorious state of subconsciousness when you knew you were dreaming, but you continued to slumber in that blissful, carefree place your mind created nonetheless. She was laying on something soft. She wasn't sure what, but details were lost on her. She was happy and she had nothing to worry about. She wasn't going to ruin it by asking questions.

But then slowly, distantly, something began to pull at her, something from the outside. It originated from her cheek. A soft, growing pressure...

Her eyes blinked blearily open, and she gazed about her, disoriented. A pair of scarlet eyes stared back, inches from her face. With a surprised shriek, she slapped in the general direction of the eyes and tried to scramble away. Unfortunately, something snagged her wrist in mid-motion and gripped her waist to keep her from running away. She struggled for a moment more before realization began to seep in her just-woken mind.

Hiei regarded her with an annoyed look. "_Finally,_" came the irritated voice. "You were 'sleeping' so long I thought you had died."

Botan groaned, squeezing her eyes shut in a desperate attempt to latch onto what was left of her dream. For sleeping _so long_, it sure felt like it had only been a few hours. Her body, specifically her legs, ached all over.

"Lucky for you I decided to check your breathing before I buried you."

"How kind," she grumbled, attempting to roll on her side and shut the demon above her out. The movement failed and she ended up only squirming awkwardly, as he still had a tight hold on her wrist and waist.

"So can we get going again?" he asked almost threateningly.

With an irritated growl, her eyes snapped open and she glared at him. She ripped her wrist from his grasp and shoved him away with both hands against his chest (a very nice, hard chest, but whatever...). Grumbling the whole time, she swiped up her canvas bag and shoved her things inside of it, abandoning any hope of organization for the moment.

Dazed, Hiei remained seated in the spot where she had shoved him, watching her curiously. She stalked over to him and dropped the bag heavily into his lap. She was still sleep worn, her clothes disheveled and askew, her hair mussed and her eyes tired. "Well, let's go," she piped. "I'm ready. I can keep going for hours. I'm like a freaking energizer bunny!"

With a huff, she turned on her heel and marched down the closest corridor. Wisely choosing to remain silent, Hiei slung the pack over his shoulder and rose to his feet. He followed after her in slight confusion, briefly wondering what in the nine hells a 'freaking energizer bunny' was.

* * *

Suppressing the ninth yawn of the hour, Botan searched the stone walls for an arrow. Luckily, they hadn't run into a lot of stairs yet, just a lot twisting corridors. But stairs or no stairs, she still felt exhausted. That's what she got for determining to keep up with her demon companion's pace. She had felt her usually non-existent temper flare up this morning and the last thing she wanted to do was make Hiei hate her even more, so instead of snapping at him, she had continued the trek at double their previous pace. At first, it had been a nice way to vent some frustration and early morning nerves, but now it felt like she had assigned herself a death sentence. She hadn't even eaten breakfast! 

"Uughn... kill me..."

"Is that an order?" Hiei quipped pleasantly from behind her.

She rolled her eyes. "Sorry, no."

There was a long pause. "Right... so are all humans this moody?"

Letting out a long sigh, she stopped and turned to face him. "No, Hiei," she said, her voice softening. "I'm sorry, I really am. I'm just a little tired, and hungry."

"Hn. Whatever, I don't care. I actually prefer it," he replied. "Do you know how annoying that perky voice of yours can get?"

She flushed, turning quickly back around. "I didn't realize, no."

They continued on their hike, and Botan kept respectively to herself. A few minutes had passed when Hiei suddenly gave a disgusted sound, as if he had swallowed a nasty bug. "_Ughnn..._ what the hell _is _that?"

Botan stopped, glancing back at him in curiosity. "Are you alright?"

Hiei was glaring down at his stomach, his hand was pressed against it, his mouth open in pure revolt. "It's this weird feeling... detestable... it was like, I insulted you and then this feeling just... _hit _me." And then, so softly that Botan almost didn't hear it, a faint whimper escaped him that seemed to say, _Make it go away._

Botan pondered for a minute, just as lost as he was. A feeling? _Hmm..._

Tilting her head, she regarded him carefully. "Perhaps," she began slowly, a satisfied smile creeping it's way up her lips, "it's... guilt?"

He looked up at her. "Guilt?" he repeated in disbelief.

She nodded. "Yes. You feel bad about what you said to me?"

Hiei scoffed, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms haughtily across his chest. "Yeah. You wish."

She shrugged indifferently and headed back down the corridor, but the satisfied smile never left her lips. The entire incident appeased her for the next fifteen minutes and her mood lightened. That was, however, until they rounded a corner and came face to face with a corroded wall, revealing a dank passageway. The way the dust and scattered stones appeared against the ground, it seemed like it had been knocked loose recently.

She had stopped so abruptly, Hiei actually ran into her this time, getting a face full of blue hair. Growling, he spat and swatted it away. But before he could deliver a harsh reprimand, she touched his arm and pointed. "Look. This passage wasn't open before..."

This news seemed to have an opposite effect on the demon than on her and he smirked happily. "Oh, so the brilliant scholar doesn't remember everything, does she?" He leaned in closer and dangled the bag by her face. "Need to check your 'notes'?"

She pushed the bag away. "Don't be so smug. This is serious. This entrance was blocked and locked with a magic seal."

Hiei looked on the verge of offering an even more smug reply, but a noise interrupted him that sounded akin to giant nails scratching and scuffling against the stone. The pair simultaneously froze, glancing into the darkened entrance. Botan paled and shuffled closer to Hiei. "Okay, now I'm scared..."

Hiei took the torch from her trembling hand and raised it higher towards the passageway. He stepped slowly into the illuminated area, and Botan had no choice but to follow along after him. She watched as he sniffed at the air. A quiet, sort of shriek echoed against the stone.

"This is not good... _so_ not good.."

_Skreeeeek-ehe-k-k-khhh!_

The ear splitting noise came from directly above them. Botan screamed and gripped Hiei as if he were a life force. Above them, inching it's way down from the ceiling was a gigantic spider. Roughly the size of an elephant, it was devoid of all skin and flesh, clacking a pair of tusk like fangs as it hissed and screeched.

"Huh..." Hiei raised an eyebrow. "So _that's_ what's making all that noise..."

"It's... it's a _Necrachid!"_

Seemingly oblivious to Botan's terror, Hiei casually gestured a thumb in the monster's direction. "So this things got a name?"

"Yes!" Botan trilled, gripping at the fabric of his shirt. "Bone-spider! Devourer of flesh! Ancient horror of darkness and black magic! Take your pick! Just kill it! _Kill it kill it kill it!"_

Hiei was trying, unsuccessfully, to pry Botan away from him. "Why?"

"Before it kills us!" she yelled in exasperation.

His eyebrow arched partly in annoyance, partly in amusement. He leaned away, giving up on his efforts to force her off. "You mean kill _you. I_ am an immortal."

She gaped at him in disbelief. He was serious. She looked frantically over his shoulder. The spider was now on the ground, approaching them ominously. Well, there was only one thing to do if she wanted to escape with her skin still in tact. Leaving no room for debate, she quickly took Hiei's face into her hands and, ignoring the look of confusion on his face, swooped in and kissed him.

There was an explosion of smoke and then a loud rumbling, quickly followed by the ear-splitting sound of bones shattering beneath the weight of an enormous demon. Botan was launched forward amidst the transformation, tumbling and crashing her way through the debris. After she landed, she groaned and pushed herself upright, trying to see through the dust and smoke.

As it began to clear, she crawled her way over to Hiei's large shape, coughing and fanning the air in front of her face. "Did you kill it?" she called.

She heard a grunt and more cracking as he shifted. He had transformed right on top of the Necrachid, effectively 'squashing' it, if you will. She gave a cry of delight and stood to her feet, clapping her hands. "You did it!" She picked her way through broken bones and loose stone and made it to her demon's side. She hoisted herself onto his stomach and crawled over his skin to kneel on his chest, where she could better see his eyes. "You saved my life."

Hiei only glared, raising his head up slightly. "Great for you!" he growled in that deep, guttural voice. "Next time you want to kiss me and alter my size– let me know! Okay?"

Botan was too happy to even care about the sarcasm and bitter diatribe. She nodded. "Okay. Are you ready this time?" She reached up and touched his cheek.

"Uh..."

She leaned forward placed a kiss against his lower lip. The transformation, complete with smoke, occurred, but Botan didn't pull back immediately. She found herself half on top of his smaller form, letting her lips linger against his for longer than necessary. Even so, the demon didn't protest.

When she finally raised her head, she smiled down at him as he blinked in bewilderment. "Was that better?"

"Well, um... I guess so," he muttered.

"Good! Then let's go." She stood to her feet.

"Wait."

She paused, turning hopefully. The demon's cheeks flushed a little and he frowned. "The uh.. I mean, the clothes I was wearing, sort of..."

"Oh." Botan blushed as well, turning quickly around. She should have remembered that going to his original size would rip and render useless his small wardrobe. She waited, listening as he gathered the shreds, arranging them around his waist. When he announced he was finished, she turned to find the pieces of fabric woven intricately around him in such a way that they stood up and resembled an odd sort of pants. However, he was now lacking in shirt. Not that she was complaining in any way. The toned chest was more than enough eye candy for her.

"Well!" She laughed nervously, reddening at her own thought. "Let's be on our way, shall we?"

"Ugh... _another_ weird feeling!" she heard him mutter to himself behind her, his tone ugly and confused.

_Oh dear..._

* * *

**J.J. - **Hope you enjoyed, as I certainly enjoyed writing it.

Next chapter: Moving Too Fast


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